Restraints of the age-graded classroom on grade-level organizational structures have been present since the beginning of formal schooling in the United States. Using interpretivist case study methods, this research explored administrators' and teachers' experiences with self-contained and departmentalized classrooms at the elementary level. Data from six participants--Zack, Kelly, Jesse, Lisa, Tori, and Stacey--consisted of one-on-one interviews, observations, and documents pertinent to grade-level organization. The researcher applied inductive analysis to analyze data. Findings revealed that although the majority of participants preferred to teach in a self-contained setting, they felt departmentalized classrooms required less work, making their jobs as educators easier. Findings also revealed that teachers, for the most part, had the power to decide which structure they wanted to implement in their classroom in this district. A third finding revealed that the decision-making process grade-level organizational structures stopped at the teacher-administrator level and was not a decision made at the district or state level. Limitations for this study include the small number of teacher-participants who were teaching in a self-contained classroom, the time of year data collection took place limited the number of participants willing to participate and their flexibility with observations, and the lack of gender and racial diversity in the sample. Recommendations for future research include a qualitative examination of the ways teachers put students first and the challenges teachers face in regards to the climate of testing, accountability, and mistrust in the profession, researching differences in student achievement data in self-contained versus departmentalized classrooms to see if data reflect that one structure might impact student test scores. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]